


Breaking the Bottle

by greendalecoolcat



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Angst, Drinking, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-27
Updated: 2016-06-27
Packaged: 2018-07-18 12:36:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 981
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7315474
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greendalecoolcat/pseuds/greendalecoolcat
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Annie helps Jeff find an alternative to drinking.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breaking the Bottle

**Author's Note:**

> I started this ficlet a while ago but I decided to finally finish it tonight. I know a lot of people feel as though Jeff's drinking should have been addressed, so I wrote this to share my headcanon of the situation. I hope you like it!
> 
> ***Warning: Drinking and alcoholism is addressed.

Jeff loved scotch. He always had. Once he became a lawyer way back when, it was his expensive drink of choice, and even after he got disbarred it stuck with him. He drank it when he celebrated, he drank it when he was winding down, he drank it when he was stressed.

There were a lot of different reasons why Jeff flocked to the bottle, but as he got older the reasons seemed to multiply. Frankie once called him a ‘Functional Alcoholic’ and he denied that title of course, but maybe she was right. Once he got his shit together and opened up to Annie, he tried to stray from the amber liquid. He was happy and in love. They were _actually_ together and in a full-fledged functioning relationship.

But that didn’t save him from stressful days at work or days when he was feeling particularly depressed about god knows what. So sometimes when he returned home after a long day, he poured himself a glass. Annie never judged him because hey, everyone needs a drink once in a while. But the days where he would reach for a third or fourth glass, or the days that he would take the entire bottle with him while he locked himself in the study were the days that Annie got concerned.

On one of those days, Jeff was sitting on the couch finishing off his second glass while some reality show about digging for gold in Alaska played soundlessly on the TV. Annie was in the kitchen preparing dinner when he grabbed the bottle and took it to the couch. She wasn’t monitoring him or anything, but she wanted to think of a way to steer him away from depending on the alcohol.

And that’s when she got an idea. There were only two things that Jeff loved more than his bottles of Macallan. Coming in second on the list was sex. Jeff loved sex, and he had made that fact very clear throughout. But at the top of the list was Annie. Jeff loved her more than anything, and Annie knew it.

So maybe she could put herself and one of his other favorite things to use in order to distract Jeff.

Before he could pour his third glass, Annie made her way over to the couch and sat pressed up against Jeff’s side. She took the empty glass from his hand and placed it on the table beside him. Before he could question her actions, she grabbed his face and hauled herself up to place a sound kiss on his lips.

It was a moment before Jeff responded, tangling his fingers through her hair and opening his mouth over hers. For a while, they made out and forgot about everything else.

* * *

 

The next time Jeff came home from work under stress, Annie was emptying grocery bags in the kitchen. Jeff reached around her to take a glass from the cabinet, his other hand found the scotch sitting against the tiled wall. Before he opened the bottle, Annie pulled at his hands and tugged him to her until she was able to stand on her toes and kiss away his stress.

His hands forgot about their previous task and found their way to grip onto Annie’s waist, anchoring her body against his. His kisses were hungry and desperate, like he wanted to push away every other thought.

And it worked, because after their intense make out, Jeff abandoned the scotch and went to help Annie put away the groceries.

* * *

A few days later, after Jeff’s twelve-hour work day, he walked through the door and dropped his briefcase has he searched for Annie. Once he spotted her by the answering machine listening to missed messages, he strode over and hauled himself against her.

“Hi, Je‒” In the same moment, his lips were crashing against hers, searching for relief. His hands roamed her body, unable to find satisfaction. They pressed against her back, tangled in her hair, gripped the fabric of her sweater, and squeezed her delicate shoulders. It was as if they were searching for the answers that were normally answered by unscrewing the cap of a bottle.

Finally, he moved them to cup her face. After one final kiss, he pressed his forehead against hers while they caught their breath.

“Hi,” he said as he pushed hair behind her ear.

“Hi. You okay?” Annie asked as she smoothed a thumb over his wrist.

“I am now,” Jeff shot her a crooked smile.

Annie smiled at him and slowly pulled him to their bedroom.

* * *

Later that evening Jeff vented about his stresses at work and opened up about his insecurities. Annie laid next to him and listened to every word, stroking her hand soothingly along his arm. She was happy he was finally talking to her rather than keeping it bottled up inside.

“Sorry I kind of…jumped on you when I got home earlier. You just…I don’t know. You make me feel better. Ugh, God. That sounds so lame,” he threw his arm over his face.

“No! No, Jeff, I get it.” Annie reassured him and pulled his arm from his face. She really did understand. After all, she intentionally devised a plan to get him to stop relying in his scotch so he would go to her instead, but she didn’t plan on telling him that. She wanted him to make the decision for himself. And it seemed as if he was beginning to, which is why she was so happy that he accosted her in their entry way. “And don’t apologize, that’s one of my favorite ways to be greeted.”

He chuckled and rolled his eyes as she leaned down to kiss his cheek.

When he finally looked at her again, it was filled with adoration and appreciation. “I love you.”

She smiled right back, “I love you too.”


End file.
